Live By Night

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Ben Affleck

Cast: Ben Affleck, Elle Fanning, Chris Messina, Brendan Gleeson, Remo Girone, Robert Glenister, Sienna Miller, Zoe Saldana, Max Casella and Chris Cooper.

Rating: Average.

Two time Academy Award Winner, Ben Affleck, is back with his fourth film as a director and writer and second as a producer with “Live By Night” and in a certain way I was pleased with the result.

Based in the novel by Dennis Lehane, “Live by Night” takes place in Boston during the Prohibition Era  time  tells the story of Joe Coughlin (Ben Affleck) a young Bostonian who works for Albert White (Robert Glenister) leader of the Irish Mob and at the same time he has an affair with his boss girlfriend Emma Gould (Sienna Miller).

One day, Joe is betrayed by Emma and White and his men beat up Joe which leads him to the hospital and he is found guilty for the murder of three police officers.

Eventually Joe will get out of prison and he swears revenge against Albert White, who is now in Florida controlling the liquor business. This time Joe will join the Italian Mob who also want to control the already mentioned  business and he will recruit his partner and friend Dion Bartolo (Chris Messina) and together they will take on Albert White and the Irish Mob.

One of the things that I liked of “Live by Night” was the story. Ben Affleck is a fantastic storyteller and he knew to tell a story during the prohibition era in Boston, where Affleck grew up.

“Live By Night” is the second movie that Affleck directs that is based on a novel by Dennis Lehane. I do think it´s a good mob story, but unfortunately the movie became to predictable. There are elements specially in the third act of the film that were not convincing and didn´t make any sense like the ending that was full with clichés and it should have ended in another way.

The change of Elle Fanning´s character  was another flaw of this film since I didn´t buy the change she dad . I understand and justify the character but I didn´t think that Elle Fanning was the correct choice for portraying that character.

Despite of it´s flaws, the movie deliver and entertains. Aflleck knew how to get the best of his actors who most of them give very good performances especially Sienna Miller and Chris Messina.

he cinematography by Academy Award Winner Robert Richardson who has worked with directors like Oliver Stone and Quentin Tarantino  was great and the camera angles and movements were very well used. He knew how to capture through the lens the emotions of the characters making them believable.

The Third Act Climax of the film was one of the best parts of the film and it was a fantastic action sequence and was very well choreographed. I do consider this sequence a kind of homage to movie like “The Untouchables” by Brian De Palma and by moments  both “The Godfather Part I and II” by Francis Ford Coppola and “Goodfellas” by Martin Scorsese.

I´ve mentioned in the past that Ben Affleck is a great director and he proved again, although I have to mention that this has been his weakest film and I´m sure he will learn from this one and I hope his next movie is even better.

Even though “Live by Night” is far from the quality of  hisprevious films, the action sequences of this film were very well made and the result of the product was satisfying.

Affleck´s screenplay does work but it could have been better if the flaws that I mentioned before would have been fixed.

I give “Live by Night” a slight recommendation since it could have been a better picture maintained its´s premise: entertainment and entertain.

I invite you to leave your comments at emilio.frenk@gmail.com or my twitter @FrenkEmilio.  

A Monster Calls

         By Emilio Frenk. 

          Director: J.A. Bayona

Cast: Lewis MacDougall, Felicity Jones, Sigourney Weaver, Toby Kebbell, James Melville, Ben Moore, Geraldine Chaplin and Liam Neeson.

Rating: Excellent.

J.A. Bayona, director of “The Orphanage” and “The Impossible” brings “ A Monster Calls” and without a doubt this is a fantastic film.

Based on the novel by Patrick Ness from an original idea from Siobhan Dowd, “ A Monster Calls” tells the story of Connor O’ Malley (Lewis MacDougall) a young boy who currently is dealing with the terminal illness of his mother (Felicity Jones) and gets bullied constantly at school.

Connor’s life will change when a Yew Tree Monster (Liam Neeson) visits him at midnight and tells him three stories that not only will change Connor’s life but will help him fix his unhappy life and deal with his anger.

“A Monster Calls” not only is great fantasy movie but an amazing and real drama. J.A. Bayona once again directed a beautiful movie with a deep and profound message that deals with anger and resentment, which have been topics in modern society but he portrayed it in a way that has never been seen.

The screenplay written by Patrick Ness who also wrote the novel has a lot of similarities with the book it´s  real and profound. Ness wrote the screenplay with every single detail and had the advantage that he knew the story from head to toe.

The performance by young Lewis MacDougall is astonishing as well as Felicity Jones who had a fantastic 2016 and did movies like “Rogue One: A Star Wars Shttps://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R2Xbo-irtBAtory” and now “A Monster Calls”. She portrays Connor’s mom with so much realism and you feel identified with the character and you buy the fact that she is a mother dealing with an illness and at the same time she loves her son.

The cinematography by Oscar Faura was outstanding and the way he played with the camera specially with the moments that Connor was with the monster was engaging and the contrast the movie plays with works at all levels.

The monster was beutifully created and the special and visual effects of the movie work at all levels.

I noticed that “ A Monster Calls” has many Steven Spielberg moments and you can tell that Bayona was influenced by Spielberg’s style since it has similarities from his previous work by in the 80’s and part of the 90’s.

This movie was sweet, tender and I do believe that you will leave the theater in tears since it will make you cry.

With that being said “A Monster Calls” is a winner and I give it a huge recommendation for it’s directing, acting and moving message.

Silence

           By Emilio Frenk

           Director: Martin Scorsese

Cast: Andrew Garfield, Adam Driver, Liam Neeson, Tadanobu Asano, Yosuke Kubozuka, Issei Ogata, Diego Calderón and Ciarán Hinds.

Rating: Excellent.

Academy Award Winning Director Martin Scorsese joins forces for the third time with writer Jay Cocks and brings “Silence” and once again Mr. Scorsese delivered.

Based on the novel by Shusaku Endo, “Silence” takes place in the seventeen century and tells the story of Sebastiao Rodrigues (Andrew Garfield) and Francisco Garupe (Adam Driver), two Portuguese Jesuit priests travel to Japan to locate Father Cristóvao Ferreira (Liam Neeson) who is gone missing.

Now the priests travel to Japan to rescue Ferreira and to spread the word of god. Once both Rodrigues and Garupe arrive to Japan they will suffer persecution and violence.

Now both priests will have the choice to continue spreading the word of God and pay the price or renounce their faith in order to survive.

“Silence” is very different from the movies of Martin Scorsese and that is the beauty of this film. It is not as violent as most of Scorsese movie where he uses violence as a tool but it is justified.

Yes, the movie is tense but at the same time is a very slow paced film. Like I mentioned before this is the third time that Martin Scorsese works with his co-writer Jay Cocks, who he previously work in “The Age of Innoncence” and “Gangs of New York”.

Both Scorsese and Cocks wrote a beutiful and strong screenplay. It was written with so much detail that they both went deep into the japanese culture of the seventeen century and as members of the audience we begin to be interested in their culture.

The performances by both Andrew Garfield and Adam Driver are amazing and you can tell they were both commited to the parts. Driver is one of the most versatile actors in this day and Garfield had a wonderful 2016 with “Hacksaw Ridge” and now with  “Silence” is the proof of that.

Other elements like the cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto was beutifully shot. The way that Prieto played with the contrasts when the characters were both in Portugal and the majority in Japan was captured in a magnificent way. Prieto also shot the landscapes beautifully and one of the things that I loved of the cinematography of “Silence” was the fact that this movie was shot on both 35mm and Digital and looks fantastic.

I have mentioned previously that seeing a film by Martin Scorsese is a blessing and a delight. He is one of the most important directors of cinema and once again he proved it with “Silence”.

Before watching “Silence” be totally open minded and take note that this film is almost three hours. It´s slow paced but if you see it with different eyes and specially if you are a history lover you are going to be amazed with this film.

Martin Scorsese directed another winner and “Silence” is one of 2016 best films and I give it a huge recommendation. 

Hidden Figures

           By Emilio Frenk

           Director: Theodore Melfi

Cast: Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer, Janelle Monáe, Kirsten Dunst, Jim Parsons, Kevin Costner, Aldis Hodge, Kimberly Quinn and Mahershala Ali.

Rating: Excellent.

Theodore Melfi, director of 2014´s comedy “St. Vincent” brings “Hidden Figures” and I must say that I was very pleased with this film.

Based on true events, “Hidden Figures” tells the story of Katherine Johnson (Taraji P. Henson), Dorothy Vaughan (Octavia Spencer) and Mary Jackson (Janelle Monáe) three african american mathematicians who work at the West Computer Center at Langley, Virginia.

With their mathematical knowledge the three women helped NASA to launch the first space mission program which involved John Glen, the first american astronaut on making the whole orbit to earth.

One of the things that I loved from “Hidden Figures” was the story that is inspirational and filled with courage.

Both Allison Schroeder and Theodore Melfi adapted a brillian screenplay based on the novel by the same name by Margot Lee Shetterly; it was written so much detail and realism that reflects what you see in the screen.

The direction of Melfi towards the cast was very good and the whole cast delivered true and convincing performances.

The three women Taraji P. Henson, Octavia Spencer and Janelle Monáe were magnificent in their respective roles and it was such a blessing watching this movie and these talented actress with a fantastic direction by Theodore Melfi delivered moved and inspirational performances.

“Hidden Figures” is an example of perseverance,  courage and never giving up. This women are a true example to follow and with their wisdom and knowledge made history and I am happy to see this kind of movies being brought to the big screen.

This movie was a huge learning experience since I wasn´t familiar with the story of Katherine Johnson, Dorothy Vaughan and Mary Jackson and indeed I learned.

From the minute the movie started to the end I was very satisfied and happy for the result that I saw in the screen.

Academy Award Winner Hans Zimmer joined forces with Pharrell Williams to compose a remarkable score. One of the things that I loved beside the scoring was the use of some of the songs from the Ray Charles and other musicians from the era and it worked at all levels.

Theodore Melfi hit another winner with “Hidden Figures” and once I left the theater I felt inspired and moved with the story of this three women who are an example of perseverance and wisdom.

I hope this film gets some Academy Award nominations since it´s an authentic true story with not only and amazing direction and screenplay but incredible acting.

“Hidden Figures” is one of the best movies of 2016 and I encourage you to watch it since you will not be disappointed.  

Fences

           By Emilio Frenk. 

           Director: Denzel Washington

Cast: Denzel Washington, Viola Davis, Stephen Henderson, Jovan Adepo, Russell Hornsby, Saniyya Sidney and Mykelti Williamson.

Rating: Very Good.

Two Time Academy Award Winner Denzel Washington directs, acts and produces “Fences” his third movie as a director and I was very impressed with Washington’s directorial skills.

Based on the play of the same name by August Wilson, “Fences” takes place in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania during the 1950’s and tells the story of Troy Maxson (Denzel Washington) a waste collector who is married to Rose (Viola Davis) and constantly hangs out with his best friend and co worker Jim Bono (Stephen Henderson).

Both Troy and Rose raised their son Cory (Jovan Adepo), who wants to become a football player despite of his father’s prejudgements and resentments towards sports.

One day Rose asks Troy to build a Fence; eventually Troy will asks his son to build it with him which will lead to conflicts with Cory since his dream is to become a professional football player and his father´s constant refusal on letting his son pursue his dream.

Now Troy will have to make the correct choices or he will loose his family for good due to his behaviour and resentment towards society.

“Fences” not only is a movie that is very well acted, but it’s very well directed.

Denzel Washington knew how to direct every single one of his cast including himself and delivered very good performances.

The screenplay written by August Wilson, who passed away but it was completed it’s a deep and truthful film that explains with detail how the average the life of family who have struggles and limitations that lead to frustration.

I liked the way how elements like anger, resentment and ignorance were portrayed in the film in a way that has never seen before.

I sustained that Denzel Washington is one of the most important actors in the business and this film proves it.

Since his debut film as a director “Antwone Fisher” in 2002 which he also acted in, Washington knows how to direct this kind of films were the inner conflicts and external of the characters are reflected from the beginning.

Although the movie is very theatrical since it’s based in a Broadway Play but it works at all levels.

The cinematography by Charlotte Bruus Christensen is beautifullycaptured and the way she shot every single frame with detail and the contrasts she portrayed with every moment of the film that involved the loneliness and emotions of the characters worked at all levels

The score composed by Marcelo Zarvos captures every single moment that you feel the characters and the way he used those key elements that engage us with them.

If you are going to see “Fences” please be patient with the dialogue and do your research before watching this movie.

Another performance that I was in awe was with Jovan Adepo, who made an incredible debut byplayingin Cory the film. He brought so much realism to his character that you believe all the conflicts his character is havind due to his estranged relationship with Washington’s character.

Mykelti Williamson who portrays Washington’s mental disabled brother in the film is amazing as well and delivers one of his best performances of his career.

I do believe that “Fences” is amovie that can land a couple of Academy Award Nominations in Febraury for both Denzel Washingotn and Viola Davis for their magnificent performances.

With that being said, “Fences” is one of the best films of 2016 and I give it a huge recommendation for it’s acting and directing. 

Passengers

           By Emilio Frenk. 

           Director: Morten Tyldum

Cast: Jennifer Lawrence, Chris Pratt, Michael Sheen, Kara Flowers, Vince Foster, Laurence Fishburne and Andy García.

Rating: Good.

Academy Award Director Nominee Morten Tyldum, brings “Passengers”,  a Science Fiction film that obeyed his main premise: entertainment.

The movie takes place in the spaceship Avalon that travels to the planet Homestead II,  where mechanical engineer Jim Preston (Chris Pratt) and an attractive writer Aurora Lane (Jennifer Lawrence) discover that they both wake up 90 years before their reached their destination.

Now both passengers have realized that the ship have a malfunction that compromised the whole hibernating process. Now both have to fix the problem before it`s too late and ultimately can lead in a major disaster for the mission and  hibernating pods.

“Passengers” is not just a regular science fiction film. I do believe that is more than that and it´s an original love story.

The script written by Jon Spaihts, who also wrote Marvel Comics “Doctor Strange” wrote a unique and original screenplay. The flaw that I found here in the script it would be that most of the dialogue was on the nose and it was filled with many cliché moments.

The directing by Morten Tyldum was preety convincing and the technical choices he made were very good.

The cinematography by Rodrigo Prieto, who`s credit include movie like “Brokeback Mountain” and “The Wolf of Wall Street” once again did an amazing job with the use of camera movements and angles that made the film visually impressive.

I felt the movie was more focused in the looks then in terms of performance since there were moments that both Jennifer Lawrence and Chris Pratt were to over the top with the performances.

Still I wasn´t bothered with that and I felt that the chemistry between the actors was preety good.

Another flaw that I saw was the ending. I think another ending with more dramatic feels would have been more interesting since most of the movie the main characters they have both internal and external conflicts and it could have been a good culmination to the story.

Despite the flaws that “Passengers” had I really enjoyed and I do think it an original love story. I still believe that it could have been a better film but I was pretty satisfied.

“Passengers” is a good science fiction and drama film and I hope you are going to be entertained and pleased. 

Collateral Beauty

           By Emilio Frenk 

           Director: David Frankel

Cast: Will Smith, Edward Norton, Michael Peña, Naomie Harris, Jacob Latimore, Ann Dowd, Keira Knightley, Kate Winslet and Helen Mirren.

Rating: Poor.

David Frankel, director of movies like “The Devil Wears Prada” and “Marley and Me” comes with “Collateral Beauty” and despite of having a cast with A list actors it was not good enough and the results were very poor.

The movie centers on Howard Inlet (Will Smith) a succesful advertising executive who suffers a major tragedy due to the death of her young daughter.

Not only Howard’s life has changed, but he hates life and begins to suffer from clynical depression. This behavior begins to worry his business partners Whit Yardsham (Edward Norton), Claire Wilson (Kate Winslet) and Simon Scott (Michael Peña).

The trio eventually will discover that Howard writes letters to things like Death, Love and Time; thanks to this discovery the trio makes, they have the idea of hiring struggling theater actors comformed by Aimee (Keira Knightley), Raffi (Jacob Latimore) and Brigitte (Helen Mirren); the three will masquerade as Love, Time and Death to confront Howard and bring him back to reality before his career is jeopardized and the future of his business partners and the company.

The main problem of “Collateral Beauty” beside the title of the film was the screenplay and the direction.

The movie became to predictable from the moment it started until the end and David Frankel didn´t take enough chances on getting the best out of his cast which is conformed by both Academy Award Nominees and Winners.

The screenplay written by Alan Loeb who wrote movies like “The Switch” and “Wall Street: Money Never Sleeps” became to obvious and I didn´t buy the transitions of time that took place during the movie.

The movie had an interesting premise but it was not well written and directed and the result speaks for itself.

I have an enoumous respect to the cast of this movie, specially to Will Smith and Edward Norton who is one of the most talented actors in this industry. The problem is on the script which led to a bad direction.

David Frankel directed back in 2008 “Marley and Me”, which not only is funny but at the same time is a sad movie, but it worked. He is a director that he knows how to direct a movie like this and of course it led to poor choices in the direction.

The movie has a very slowed paced but it has no meaning for that. I don´t mind slow paced movies as long as it have a good reason for that. Here despite of the running time of the film I felt it gave too much information which led to boredom.

This movie had the potential to deliver the goods due to the cast the movie  and theme since most of this type of movies are shot in New York City during Christmas Eve, which has become a very common thing.

With that being said, “Collateral Beauty” is a major dissapointment and I cannot recommend it. 

Why Him?

By Emilio Frenk 

Director: John Hamburg

Cast: Zoey Deutch, James Franco, Bryan Cranston, Megan Mullaly, Griffin Gluck, Keegan-Michael Key, Zack Pearlman, Adam Devine and Cedric the Entertainer.

Rating: Poor.

John Hamburg, director of “I Love You Man” brings “Why Him?”, another holiday comedy movie that hit theaters last december and the results were very poor.

The movie centers on Ned Fleming (Bryan Cranston),  a CEO from a printing company in Michigan who is happily married to his wife Barb (Megan Mullaly) and has two children: Stephanie (Zoey Deutch) and Scotty (Griffin Gluck).

One day Ned receives a facetime call from his daughter Stephanie, who currently studies at Stanford University; she asks the family to spend Christmas Eve in San José, California. At the beginning Ned is hesitant but eventually he will agree to come with his family to visit her daughter in Northern California.

Once they are in San José, the family will meet Laird Mayhew (James Franco) an app, videogame creator and multimillionaire who happens to be Stephanie’s boyfriend; to make things worse he constantly swares and curses which drives the family crazy, specially Ned.

Now Ned will do anything to protect his daughter from Laird who not only will try to gain the Fleming’s trust but will pop out the question to Stephanie unless Ned prevents it.

“Why Him?” is a comedy that had some laughs and had an interesting start but at the half of the second act of the film, the movie went directly to a downward spiral.

I have the feeling that I have seen this kind of movies before and this reminded me of a carbon copy of “Meet the Parents” of 2001 directed by Jay Roach.

John Hamburg is a director who knows to direct this kind of movies. He did with “I Love You Man” which not only is a funny movie, but has a heart and is sweet and touching. Here this wasn´t the case and the movie by moments went to far.

The screenplay also written by Hamburg and his co writer Ian Helfer was too weak and by moments it abuses of swearing and goes to far with the gags and becames to sexist.

I was having a high expectation towards the chemistry between Bryan Cranston and James Franco, since both actors are the most talented in Hollywoood but I didn´t see it here.

There were moments that there were funny but sometimes it drove me crazy the overacting of both actors.

Yes, there were moments of tenderness but they were just a few. When the movie became redundant it stopped being funny and I didn´t laugh for a second.

On a positive note the funny thing of this film was the good comedy involved with Keegan-Michael Key who plays James Franco´s assistant in the film and James Franco, who are having a training that consists in combat and  I consider it a homage to the “Pink Panther” movies between the relationship of Inspector Clouseau played by Peter Sellers and his butler Cato played by Burt Kwouk.  Even in the film this moment is mentioned by Bryan Cranston´s character. 

I honestly had expectations of this film of becoming a true and good comedy since I really liked “I Love You Man” but this was not the case and it was a huge dissapointment.

This movie had the potential to be a good holiday comedy due to the cast and power house actors like Bryan Cranston and James Franco but there were not well directed and the results speaks for itself.

I hope this is a learning experience of John Hamburg, who is very talented in directing comedies but this wasn´t the case.

With that being said, “Why Him?” was one of 2016 biggest comedy dissapointments and unfortunately I cannot recommend it. 

Sing

By Emilio Frenk

Directors: Garth Jennings and Christophe Lourdelet

Cast (Voice): Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane, Scarlett Johansson, John C. Reilly, Taron Egerton, Tori Kelly, Jennifer Saunders, Nick Kroll,  Nick Offerman, Jennifer Hudson, Peter Serafinowicz and Rhea Perlman.

Rating: Excellent.

Illumination Entertainment, the studio who brought “Despicable Me”, followed by a second part, “The Minions” and “The Secret Life of Pets” brings “Sing” and again I was very surprised with the result of this film.

The movie tells the story of Buster Moon (Matthew McConaughey) an optimistic koala who runs “The Moon Theater”.

With foreclosure coming ahead and still with high hopes and dreams, Buster has an idea who shares it with his best friend Eddie (John C. Reilly) a suffolk sheep. The idea is to do the biggest singing competition n the theater and the winner will have a price of $100,000.

Thanks to the price millions of animals audition but the ones who are elegible are Johnny (Taron Egerton) a gorilla, Rosita (Reese Witherspoon) a female pig with huge aspirations of becoming a singer and dancer, Mike (Seth MacFarlane) a street mouse with a voice like Frank Sinatra, Gunther (Nick Kroll) a male dancing pig, Ash (Scarlett Johansson) a crested porcupine and punk rocker and Meena (Tori Kelly) an shy indian elephant with a remarkable singing voice.

Not only this will represent a chance for Buster to redeem himself but to continue he´s father´s legacy who previously own the theater.

From the minute “Sing” started I was delighted and I was always with a big smile on my face. The storyis very original and I loved the idea that this time this kind of ideas the characters we´re not humans and there were animals.

The script written by Garth Jennings was beautifully crafted and the way how he introduced the key characters was marvelous and works in every details. He´s direction was very good and precise and as well of his directing partner Christophe Lourdelet, which marks his directorial debut with “Sing”.

The use of voiceover from the members of the cast was really good and funny and one of the things that we´re very important in this film is that as a member of the audience you feel an immediate connection to all the characters and it´s one of the most important rules in this genre specially.

This is the last animated film of 2016 and like I mentioned before in this space this has been a fantastic year for animated films.

“Sing” just recently scored a Golden Globe Nomination for Best Animated Feature and it will go head to head with Disney`s “Zootopia” which is also a fantastic animated feature film and the favorite to win it all in next year`s award season.

The use of music and all the songs from the 70´s, 80´s, 90´s and most recent pop was nicely done and everything work.

Not only “Sing” is a touching and inspiring movie, but it´s a funny film that will make you laugh from beginning to end.

I am impressed with the quality of work that Illumination Entertainment has brought in the last three years. They have been doing a fantastic job and “Sing” proves it.

The cast by Matthew McConaughey, Reese Witherspoon, Seth MacFarlane and company were very good and hilarious and I really enjoyed this movie which has a strong message which is never giving up in your dreams and dream big always.

With that being said “Sing” is one of the years best animated films and I give it a huge recommendation. 

Paterson

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Jim Jarmush

Cast: Adam Driver, Golshifteh Farahani, Rizwan Manji, Trevor Parham, Troy T. Parham, Barry Shabaka Henley and Method Man.

Rating: Excellent

Writer/Director Jim Jarmush is back three  years after “Only Lovers Left Alive” and he does it again with “Paterson” a wonderful tale about one man´s journey. 

The movie tells the story of Paterson (Adam Driver) a bus driver from Paterson, New Jersey who also happens to be a poet and writes in his free time.

He lives with his wife Laura (Golshifteh Farahani) who has an aspiration of becoming a country singer and their  english bulldog Marvin. 

As he drives the bus every day at work, Paterson will have a true discovery in his inner self but also he will know and cherish the meaning of life.

Jim Jarmush has a unique style in every single one of his movies that he has made in his illustrious career and with “Paterson” is not the exception.

Jarmush´s movies are unique and he has created interesting characters like “Ghost Dog” portrayed by Forest Whitaker  and the cast of “Coffee and Cigarettes” who most of them portray themselves.  The characters he created here as unique and truthful that the movies previously mentioned.

Adam Driver´s performance as “Paterson” is one of the best performances of this present year and confirms that he is one of the most talented young actors in film and this has been since he started in the HBO series “Girls”.

He plays Paterson with so much realism that you feel an immediate connection towards him and the rest of the characters as well.

I love the fact that movie is told chronologically and practically is based in the routine of the main character and it doesn´t lead to boredom. This kind of movies like  I have to mentioned that it can lead to the element I mentioned previously but Jim Jarmush is one of the best directors who know´s how to handle this movies with this kind of narrative.

Jarmush´s screeplay and direction were sharp , precise and as usual he created single and unique characters in this magnificent film that also has a wonderful score.

Jarmush is considered one of the most original and prolific directors of his generation and with “Paterson” created a unique vision of self discovery that is one of the main things that he has been known through all his career.

Jarmush´s film normally are very difficult to understand and are to philosophical but he did an exception with this movie.

He created a fantastic and moving film that it will not lead to boredom and Adam Driver delivered a unique performance for all ages.

Without a doubt “Paterson” is one of the best movies of 2016 and I give a huge recommendation to another Jim Jarmush masterpiece. 

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story

By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Gareth Edwards

Cast: Felicity Jones, Diego Luna, Alan Tudyk, Donnie Yen, Wen Jiang, Ben Mendelsohn, Guy Henry, Jimmy Smits,Riz Ahmed, Mads Mikkelsen and Forest Whitaker.

Rating: Excellent.

British director Gareth Edwards brings “Rogue One: A Star Wars Story” and honestly I had many prejudgements towards the film. But once again I was proven wrong and I was impressed with the result of the product.

The movie centers on Jyn Erso (Felicity Jones) a rebel warrior and thief  who is rescuedby Rebel intelligence officer Cassian Andor (Diego Luna).

The Rebel Alliance asks for Jyn´s help to steal the plans of The Death Star base created by her father Galen Erson (Madds Mikelsen) that is capable of destroying an entire planet.

Jyn agrees and she will be joined in a risky mission by Andor, his rebel droid K-2S0 (Alan Tudyk), the blind spiritual warrior Chirrut Imwe (Donnie Yen), the mercenary Baze Malbus (Wen Jiang) and the rogue pilot Bodhi Rook (Riz Ahmed) to recover the plans to destroy the imperial base and fight against the weapons developer Orson Krennic (Ben Mendelsohn).

One of the many things that work of “Rogue One” was the story. The narrative and the screnplay written by Academy Award Nominees Chris Weitz and Tony Gilroy, who´s most notable work are movies like “About a Boy” and “Michael Clayton” wrote a smart, engaging and entertaining screenplay that is loyal to the first Star Wars Trilogy (A New Hope, The Empire Strikes Back and Return of the Jedi).

The way that both Weitz and Gilroy wrote deep and truthful characters with both internal and external conflicts work at all levels and one of the things that I noticed was the fact that they weren´t any Disney elements in this film since Episode VII: The Force Awakens which was released this past december, which led into a good movie but to predictable and obvious.

Basically the events happen after “Episode III: The Reveng of the Sith” and it´s a prequel to “Star Wars: A New Hope” since it tells the origins of the imperial base which was never seen in other installments of the succesful franchise.

I remember at the beginning of 2016 started and the first teasser trailers for “Rogue One” were released I honestly had a prejudgement and I wasn´t expecting anything. In fact by moments I was having the feeling of I was going to see something similar to Episodes 1 to 3 but like I mentioned before I was wrong and I was very pleased.

The direction of Gareth Edwards is truth, sharp and his cast delivered remarkable performances. The one performance I loved the most was Ben Mendelsohn who portrays Orson Krennick with so much realism that you hate how bad as a human being he is.  Mendelsohn without a doubt is a character actor and if you don´t know about he´s work I encourage you to watch the Netflix show “Bloodline” where he won the Emmy this year for Best Supporting Actor for his portrayal of Danny Rayburn and movies like “Animal Kingdom”, “Mississippi Grind” and “The Place Beyond the Pines”

The use ofCGI (Computer-generated imagery) as well asboth special and visual effects was used in a smart way and it looked very real in all terms.

The score this time was composed by Michael Giacchino, who won the Academy Awardfor Pixar´s “Up” in 2009 was engaging and I thought by moments that it was by John Williams, who has composed all the scores from the Star Wars movies since 1977.

The use of the music in key scenes was correctly used and you feel an immediate connection to all the characters.

The ending of the film I felt like I was reviving the first trilogy of Star Wars and I was very happy since it brought me very good memories and it works and you have a feeling that you want to see more of the film, specially if you grew up with the Star Wars movies.

Rogue One: A Star Wars Story is one of the biggest surprises of this year and I definitely give it a huge recommendation.

La La Land

           By Emilio Frenk. 

           Director: Damien Chazelle

Cast: Ryan Gosling, Emma Stone, John Legend, Callie Hernandez, Rosemarie DeWitt and J.K. Simmons

Rating: Excellent.

Writer/Director Damien Chazelle, who made “Whiplash” in 2014 and scored 3 Academy Awards brings “La La Land”. Not only is a sweet and touching movie, but it’s one of the year’s best films.

The movie takes place in Los Angeles, California and tells the story of two dreamers: Sebastian (Ryan Gosling) a jazz pianist who gets fired on Christmas  by his boss Bill (J.K. Simmons) and Mia (Emma Stone) an actress and barista who gets rejected often in every audition she’s in.

They both have a serious of encounters that will lead them to fall in love for each other.

In the way their will be obstacles and challenges due to the careers and paths they have chosen and eventually these will either represent to sacrifice their careers and continue their relantionship or chose to be on separate ways and pursue their dreams

Damien Chazelle is one of the best directors who is well known for integrating music with imagery. He previously did it with “Whiplash”, which I considered the best movie of 2014 and now he did it with “La La Land” which of course is a more ambitious project and works at every single level.

The script and direction, both by Chazelle were sharp, sweet and touching and I was very moved with the story from beginning to end.

The message is clear of never stop dreaming and never giving up in your hopes and dreams and this is what “La La Land” is all about.

The performaces by Ryan Gosling and Emma Stone are true, believable and convincing and the chemistry is rock solid. This is the third collaboration between; previously they worked in the succesful romantic comedy “Crazy, Stupid Love” and “Gangster Squad”.

I was impressed with Damien Chazell’s directing in “Whiplash” and now with “La La Land” he went all the way and made a unique film.

The score by Justin Hurwitzand the cinematography by Linus Sandgren  were impressive and this is not the typical musical were envolves themes of fantasy and everything is happy. This is the opposite and it represents the reality and the struggles of people who want to fulfill their dreams in a city like Los Angeles, where most people want to be in show business and this is how it is represented.

I do strongly believe this movie will get all the hype in this upcoming award season and it’s gonna be a movie that will be memorable for ages and I put it at the same level of Gene Kelly’s “Singin’ in the Rain” which I personally consider the best musical movie of all time.

“La La Land” like I mentioned before is one of the year’s best movies and I give it a huge recommendation and please bring a pack of tissues with you to the theaters since you are going be moved and touched.

Office Christmas Party

          By Emilio Frenk

Directors: Josh Gordon and Will Speck

Cast: Jason Bateman, Olivia Munn, T.J. Miller, Courtney B. Vance, Jillian Bell, Rob Corddry, Randall Park, Vanessa Bayer, Kate McKinnon and Jennifer Aniston.

Rating: Poor.

Josh Gordon and Will Speck, directors of “The Switch” and “Blades of Glory” bring “Office Christmas Party”, another comedy this holiday season and it was a huge dissapointment.

The movie takes place in Chicago, during the winter and tells the story of Josh Parker (Jason Bateman) a recently divorced Chief Technical Officer from the tech company Zenoteck who works closely with the engineer Tracy Hughes (Olivia Munn).

He has a very good relantionship with Clay Vanstone (T.J. Miller) who inherets the company and runs it with his sister and CEO Carol (Jennifer Aniston); in the day she organizes a meeting and announces that she is going to shut down the office due to the low numbers they have shown recently.

The solution and hope is to seek Walter Davis (Courtney B. Vance) who is a potential candidate to invest in their company. Clay, Josh and Tracy convince him to come to the annual Christmas Party of the company even though Carol previosly ordered to cancel the party.

Now the staff of Zenoteck will try to enjoy their party even if it means their last one and eventually will try to attach Walter Davis to the company in order to save everyone’s jobs in Christmas Eve.

Josh Gordon and Will Speck they know how to direct comedies. We saw it in both “The Switch” and “Blades of Glory” which not only they are very funny movies but they have interesting characters and a great premise.

The problem that I saw with “Office Christmas Party” was the fact the movie was so lame and the premise was interesting. The execution not so much.

The direction by both Gordon and Speck was not as precise and detailed and the movie was filled with dumb clichés at every single moment.

This movie has a very talented cast that include two of the most funniest people in the industry like T.J. Miller, who is hilarious in the HBO Show “Silicon Valley” and Kate Mckinnon who is a regular in “Saturday Night Live”.

I felt the movie repetive, slow and too predictable and for a comedy this are the things you cannot allow to happen.

There were moments I did laugh of the film but when the second act started it went downhill and it’s a shame because this movie could have been an enjoyable film for this holiday season and it was not the case.

The screenplay envolved four writers and when you bring to many people on board to write a movie it’s where the real trouble begins. You can tell that the writers didn’t know how to express what they wanted in the screen and this was the result of it.

Both “The Switch” and “Blades of Glory” are very funny movies and memorable and I hope this is a good learning experience for both Josh Gordon and Will Speck since they know how to direct this kind of movies.

With that being said “Office Christmas Party” is one big dissapointment in comedy with a potential cast that was wasted and I cannot recommend it. 

Incarnate

          By Emilio Frenk. 

          Director: Brad Peyton

Cast: Aaron Eckhart, Carice Van Houten, David Mazouz, Catalina Sandino Moreno, Emjay Anthony, Breanne Hill, Matt Nable and Kier O’Donnell.

Rating: Poor

Brad Peyton, director of “San Andreas” brings the supernatural thriller and horror film “Incarnate” and I consider this a huge disrespect to the genre. 

The movie tells the story of Dr. Seth Ember (Aaron Eckhart) an exorcist who is in a wheelchair due to a fatal car accident, which caused the life of his wife and son.

He is not a conventional exorcist that is affiliated with the church. In fact Dr. Ember has a method that performs the exorcism through the subconscious of the possesed, making him very succesful and well known.

Eventually he will be pursued by Camila (Catalina Sandino Moreno) a vatican representative who is in charge of the case of an 11 year old boy who is possessed by a demon.

After being skeptical of the situation, Dr. Ember decides to take on the case and study the young boy. Not only this will be his most difficult exorcism but it will test his faith in all levels. Now he has to save the child before it’s too late and the demon will be in his soul for eternity.

There is nothing that I can aknolewdege of“Incarnate.” It is one of the most ridicoulous thrillers I’ve seen in a while and it’s an ultimate rip off and I disrespect towards a movie like “The Exocist”.

Aaron Eckhart is a very talented actor and he delivered two fantastic performances this year in Clint Eastwood’s “Sully” where he portrays Jeff Skiles, the second captain of Chesley Sullenberger and Ben Younger’s “Bleed for This” where he portrays Vinny Pazienza’s trainer Kevin Rooney.

The problem with Eckhart is that this is not the only time he has chosen this kind of roles. In 2014 he did the same thing with “I Frankenstein” which was as ridicoulous and stupid as “Incarnate”.

The direction by Brad Peyton was all over the place and the performances of the cast were less compelling and convincing.

The sceenplay written by Ronnie Christensen was badly written and like the direction it was all around. The movie should have started with Aaron Eckhart’s character since he is supposed to be the lead. Instead it opens with a kid who has a possession.

The flashbacks were useless as the whole movie itself. The ending instead of being afraid I was laughing and there was a time that I was close to walk out of the theater.

I mentioned before that Aaron Eckhart is a very talented actor but the problem is the roles he has choose in the years making him one of the most underrated actors in Hollywood despite of his unique talent.

The movie that I like him the most was in Jason Reitman’s “Thank You For Smoking” were he portrayed the tobacco lobbyst Nick Naylor. When I saw this film back in 2006 I praised Eckhart’s performance. But eventually his career has been in downhill and has made very bad decisions in terms of the roles he has chosen.

The major problem of the movie besides the directing and acting was the screenplay. It needed a lot of work and the writer in this case Ronnie Christensen didn’t bother to spend more time working with his characters and this fiasco was the result of it.

I was so mad at this film that I consider it not only a disrespect to the genre but to film itself.

Sadly I do admit that the concept was interesting but the execution was very poor.

With that being said “Incarnation” is so far the worst movie of 2016 and please do not waste your time and money with this piece of trash.

Allied

          By Emilio Frenk

           Director: Robert Zemeckis

Cast: Brad Pitt, Marion Cotillard, Jared Harris, Lizzy Caplan, August Dile, Thierry Frémont and Simon McBurney.

Rating: Excellent.

Academy Award Winning Director Robert Zemeckis brings another film after his 3D experience “The Walk”. This time he does it with “Allied”  a both thriller and drama that delivered satisfying results.

Based on true events, “Allied” tells the story of Max Vatan (Brad Pitt) a Canadian Intelligence Officer who travels to Casablanca, Morocco during World War II.

There she will meet with the French Resistance fighter Marianne Beasejour (Marion Cotillard). They will pretend to be a couple in a mission that implicates the assassination of german ambassador.

As soon as they get to know each other, both agent and fighter form a connection that will lead to a true romance.

After they succesful complete the mission they decide to move to London where they get married and live a normal life.

Everything will change on the life of Max when he receives the news from the british military that her wife is a German Spy.

Now Max will need to prove to his superiors that his Marianne is not a spy or he will be forced to terminate her.

In “Allied” we see the main character struggling and wrestling with his inner demons and this is something that Robert Zemeckis has been known for his career. This elements were used in movies like “Flight”, “Forrest Gump” and “Cast Away”

“Allied” is also written by Steven Knight, who’s most notable work are movies like “Eastern Promises”, “Locke” and “Pawn Sacrifice” and he created very interesting characters and believable at all levels.

Knight wrote a very detailed screenplay and all the characters had a very hard time in achieving their goals; another thing that I loved of the film is the way of how both Knight and Zemeckis played with the progressive complications of the characters and the movie wasn’t predictable.

The visual effects and the action sequences are very well made and Zemeckis is one the biggest directors who can shoot this kind of sequences. Let’s not forget that he started his career working with Steven Spielberg, who Produced movies like the “Back to the Future Trilogy” and “Who Framed Roger Rabbit?”. As you know both movies made Zemeckis’scareer and he is one of the most influential directors in Hollywood.

The ending of the film has the style of Zemeckis with some corny moments but it didn`t bother me; in fact I was moved with it and the use of the voice over was very well executed

The chemistry between Brad Pitt and Marion Cotillard works at all levels and they bring truthful and believable performances.

The score composed by Alan Silvestri, who has worked in most of Zemecki’s films is engaging and the way Zemeckis used the score in the most tense scenes works and engages.

The End of the Second Act and The Third Act of the Film were the best things of the film and I didn’t see a moment that the movie failed. Normally there is a tendency that movies of this genre start well and then they go down and here was not the case.

“Allied” is one of the years best films and I give a huge recommendation for the directing, writing and acting.

Jackie

          By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Pablo Larraín

Cast: Natalie Portman, Peter Sarsgaard, Greta Gerwig, John Hurt, Richard E. Grant, Caspar Phillipson, Beth Grant, John Carroll Lynch, Max Casella and Billy Crudup.

Rating: Excellent.

Chilean director, Pablo Larraín, who made the acclaimed international Film “No” in 2012 makes his international debut with “Jackie” and once again it delivers.

Based on true events, “Jackie” tells the story of then First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy (Natalie Portman) in the aftermath of the assasination of her husband former President of the United States John F. Kennedy.

A journalist (Billy Crudup) comes to her house for an interview to describe what happen during her time in the White House.

In Flashbacks we will see the rise of the Kennedy’s when they were in the White House and the asssasination of The President that took place in Dallas, Texas and until this day nobody know who shot him.

Now Jacqueline Kennedy must fight and get over the trauma of the assassination of her husband and the most important thing to preserve the historic legacy her husband left.

One of the things that worked on “Jackie” was the way the story was told and the use of flasbacks in this kind of movies do work at all levels.

The direction of Pablo Larraín was sharp, and detailed and the performance of Natalie Portman as Jacqueline Kennedy was impressive at all levels.

Her performance has been one of the most powerful of this year and most likely she will score a third Academy Award Nomination for her career with her performance.

Other great performances were from Peter Saarsgard, who played John F. Kennedy’s brother Robert is remarkable as well as the rest of the cast.

The screenplay written by Noah Oppenheim who wrote “The Maze Runner” and “Allegiant” was very well written and I was very surprised of the amount of detail this movie had.  The dialogue of the script was real and organic and made Natalie Portman’s performance more real every time she was portraying Jackie Kennedy.

The Cinematography by Stéphane Fontaine, who shot this years “Captain Fantastic” and “Elle” did a wonderful job in portraying the contrasts with Jacqueline Kennedy when she was the first lady and the afterwards. The lighting and the amount of camera movements were very well executed and they were established in a very good way.

The Score composed by Mica Levi was engaging from the beginning to the end and the use of the music cues worked at all times specially in the third act finale of the film which was astonishing.

The relationship of Jackie Kennedy with Camelot of King Arthur is one of the trademarks of the picture and I love the way it was put and relationship that she had when she was in the White House and afterwards when she is isolated in her Massachussets, home.

“Jackie” is without a doubt one of the biggest surprises of this year and I highly recommended for the brilliant direction of Pablo Larraín, the screenplay and the performance by Natalie Portman which again she delivered and is a blessing to see this talented actress portraying an historical and iconic figure in American Culture.

Bad Santa 2

          By Emilio Frenk

Director: Mark Waters

Cast: Billy Bob Thornton, Tony Cox, Kathy Bates, Christina Hendricks, Brett Kelly, Jenny Zigrino, Jeff Skowro, Mike Starr  and Octavia Spencer.

Rating: Poor

Academy Award Winner, Billy Bob Thornton, is back portraying Willie Soke, the drunk thief for a second time in “Bad Santa 2” and compared with the first film released in 2003, this was a huge dissapointment.

Safe Robber Willie Soke (Billy Bob Thornton) meets with his former partner Marcus Skidman (Tony Cox) who just got out of jail for stealing money in a shopping mall in Phoenix, Arizona.

He has a proposal for Willie to steal a charity in Chicago in Christmas Eve. At the beginning Willie doesn’t accept since Marcus betrayed him before; at the end he accepts on doing the job.

Once they are in Chicago, Willie will have an encounter with his mother Sunny (Kathy Bates) who he hates her guts since she was abusive to him when Willie was a child. Now she will be in the score and they will have to split the loot.  To make things worst, the boy who annoyed Willlie , Thurman Merman (Brett Kelly) now a sandwich maker comes into action and he will face a major problem.

Now Willie not only has to steal the charity on Christmas Eve but he will need to find a way to get rid of Thurman before he gets him into trouble for a second time.

“Bad Santa 2” had moments of laughter but it was way to far from the first film which not only was funny but had a lot of heart on it.

This film not only was repetitive, but it was too predictable. The script this time was written by Johnny Rosenthal and Shauna Cross and the it had potential to be a good holiday movie but this wasn’t the case.

The movie is to vulgar and it was cheap and foul. This time Billy Bob Thornton was everything but funny compared to the first film where he was hilarious and the chemistry with Tony Cox this time it didn’t work.

The movie was boring and there were moments that I didn’t laugh a singlebit. The only moments when I laughed is when Tony Cox had a good gag but that was preety much it.

The direction by Mark Waters who did Mean Girls which is a very good comedy didn’t deliver the goods this time. The execution by Waters was not precise and he tried a huge effort on directing Thornton to be funny but here it was not the case.

The original “Bad Santa” is a good holiday movie and a good comedy. The difference is the first movie had very good comedy actors like John Ritter and Bernie Mac, who unfortanetely passed away. They both were very funny and here you had Kathy Bates, who not only is a fantastic Actress but an Academy Award Winner herself. This time you even had more goods in terms of cast but if the story is weak and the screenplay is not a good one, there was no way this movie was going to go that far.

With that being said, “Bad Santa 2” is one of the worst movies of this year and please only see the first one because this one is going to make you waste your time and money. 

Moana

          By Emilio Frenk. 

          Directors: Ron Clements and Don Hall.

Cast (Voice): Auli´i Cravalho, Dwayne Johnson, Rachel House, Temuera Morrison, Jemaine Clement, Nicole Scherzinger and Alan Tudyk.

Rating: Excellent.

Directors Ron Clements and Don Hall, who directed “The Little Mermaid” and “Aladdin” both released in 1989 and 1992 are back with “Moana” another Disney Animated Film and once again the movie delivers.

The film is set in Ancient Polynesia and tells the story of Moana (Auli’i Cravalho) the daughter of the Chief  of the village who grew up with the stories of the demigod Maui (Dwayne Johnson)

One day her Grandmother tells Moana to find Maui who years back stole a sacred stone called the Te Fiti.

Now Moana will embark on a mission to find Maui and try to bring peace and restoration to the island. This will mean not only an opportunity for Maui to redeem himself but for Moana to prove herself that she is brave, courageous and to prove herself that she can be a leader.

One of the things that I loved from “Moana” was the animation. Disney films have always impressed me with the quality of the work they bring in the table and this was not the exception.

The screenplay written by Jared Bush, who also wrote this year’s animated film “Zootopia” once again created characters with so much joy and not only that; he created a screenplay that is original, sweet and charm and the results speaks for itself.

The direction by both Ron Clements and Don Hall, who know how to direct this kind of films delivers and the election of the cast for the voiceover was fantastic. 

Other element that I loved of the film was the message towards redemption, of proving yourself and never give up no matter how big the challenge is. 

The quality of the animation and the use of colors that were used in “Moana” are top of the line and I was very impressed with the result.

Both movies of Walt Disney Animation Studios “Zootopia” and now “Moana” have been impressive. This has been a very tough year in this genre like I have mentioned many times because the majority of the films have brought enourmous quality.

The score of the film and the songs which are a trademark for every Disney Film are really good and enjoyable and I do believe that you are going to cherish this film.

Without a doubt “Moana” is one of the year’s best films and I guarantee you that you will enjoy it watching it with your family and you will be singing out of the movie theater with so much joy and delight with this film. 

Miss Sloane

          By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: John Madden

Cast: Jessica Chastain, Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Stuhlbarg, Mark Strong, Jake Lacy, Alison Pill, Sam Waterston and John Lithgow.

Rating: Excellent.

Academy Award Nominee John Madden is back with “Miss Sloane”, an intense political thriller that delivers and I was very impressed with the result.

“Miss Sloane” tells the story of Elizabeth Sloane (Jessica Chastain) a ruthless and ambitious lobbyst in Washington D.C. who’s well known for winning at all costs even if she uses dirty tricks as a resource.

Eveything will change for Miss Sloane when she is presented with agun bill proposal that every single person can carry a weapon without a passing a background check. She refuses and quits the firm that she works.

Now the members of the firm led by George Dupont (Sam Waterston) and Pat Connors (Michael Stuhlbarg) will do anything in their power to take down Miss Sloane even if it means to put her in prison.

Now Elizabeth  will have one her most difficult challenges of her career and she will put everything on the line.

“Miss Sloane” not only is a movie that is brilliantly directed by John Madden, who is well known for playing with different genres of movies and here what is brilliant is that he knew how manipulate the audience and was very smart on that.

The script written by first time writer Jonathan Perera is sharp and precise and is one of the best dialogue I`ve seen in a while and it reminds me of how Aaron Sorkin, who is considered one of the best writers in Hollywood in how he writes dialogue.

The movie is a hard criticism towards the American Political System and it was released after an intense election that we had in America recently and this is a movie that reflects how american politics are in reality.

Jessica Chastain, again delivers a wonderful performance and portrays Elizabeth Sloane with so much realism that by moments you feel identified with her but at the same time you can see that this woman has no limits in tems of winning and goes to far.

This is one of the best performances I’ve seen from her in a while and I hope that she can nail an Academy Award Nomination for this magnificent performance.

Other great performances were from Gugu Mbatha-Raw, Michael Stuhlbarg and Sam Waterston who played their characters with so much realism and they are even more vicious than Chastain’s character.

Besides being a movie about the political system in America at the same time it is a  full frontal reflection of the obsession with something and you can suffer the consequences ofit.

The third act of the film is one the best that I’ve seen in a while and has one of the greatest reversals I`ve seen recently in film.

John Madden directed another winning picture, Jonathan Perera couldn’t start his career better with a magnificent and brilliant screenplay about politics in America and Jessica Chastain is confirmed as one of the most talented actresses that are in the industry today.

“Miss Sloane” is one of the years best thrillers of this year and I give it a huge recommendation for the direction by Madden and Performances of the cast. 

Lion

          By Emilio Frenk. 

Director: Garth Davis

Cast: Dev Patel, Rooney Mara,  Aditya Roy Kapoor, Nawazuddin Siddiqui, Suny Pawar, David Wenham and Nicole Kidman.

Rating: Excellent.

Australian director Garth Davis, makes his feature film directiorial debut with “Lion” and this couldn’t have been a better start.

Based on real life events “Lion” tells the story of young Saroo Brierly (Sunny Pawar) a 5 year old boy who gets lost in a train that travels from India to Calcutta.

He will survive the challenges on living in the streets and how to manage on his own until Sue Brierly (Nicole Kidman) and her husband John (David Wenham) an australian couple decide to bring him to Australia and adopt him.

Now a 20 year old Saroo (Dev Patel) is more mature and decides to go to Melbourne where she will meet Lucy (Rooney Mara) the girl who eventually will become his girlfriend.

In a lunch with his friends Saroo has an old memory from his childhood and decides to question himself what happen to his biological parents.

He is told about Google Earth by one of his friends. So Saroo now will begin a quest for the truth and to answer the questions about his origins and roots.

One of many things that I liked from “Lion” was that it is a true and inspiring story. Garth Davis debut as a director was a very good one and it can lead to a promising career.

The way how he directed his actors and camera movements where very well executed and the performances he directed were filled with truth and there is not a single moment where they is any overacting moments, which has been a notoroius tendency.

The screenplay written by Luke Davies, not only he adapted the book “A Long Walk Home” by Saroo Brierly but happens to be his first credit as a screenwriter and he adapted a very fine screenplay. Davies knew well how to connect the dots and wrote most of the film by Saroo’s point of view and it worked.

The only thing that for moments didn’t work were flashbacks of Saroo when he is 20 years old and he is screaming his Saroo’s in the train station of India. At the same I understand the point on why he used certain flashbacks and it makes sense but if they could have cut out two of them it still could have been a very good movie.

The performances by the cast specially Nicole Kidman, who is fantastic playing Saroo’s mom is convincing and plays a loving mother with so much heart.

The performances by Dev Patel, Rooney Mara and David Wenham are truthful and you feel an instanst connection with this characters.

The message of the film I liked the way it was executed that is not giving up on hope and try to cherish all the moments that life has giving you; it’s seen in an original way that has never been seen on film and works at all levels.

“Lion” is one of the revelations of 2016, that is almost ending and I give it a huge recommendation for the direction from Garth Davis, Screenplay and Performances.